Currently, electric-field (D-dot) probes are commonly used to measure the high power microwave (HPM) wavefront outside a target. However, these probes are insensitive to electric fields having strengths less than about 1 volt per meter (V/m) even at relatively low frequencies of less than about 10 gigahertz (GHz), and they are too large to install inside targets. Since the electromagnetic wavefront changes as it propagates inside a target, new probes that can be installed inside a target must be developed. Additionally, new sensors must receive both horizontally and vertically polarized signals and be capable of processing large field strengths without arcing or distorting the HPM waveform. New probes that can sense the horizontal and vertical components of the electric field inside a target over the full frequency range (100 MHz-100 GHz) are, therefore, important.
The limitation of sensing comes from the limitations of materials used. High performance materials needed for high-frequency, high-sensitivity EO devices such as the E-field probes. While there are several candidate materials such as ferroelectric relaxors, [e.g., lead magnesium niobate (PMN), lead zirconium niobate (PZN) and mixtures of these ferroelectric relaxors], and electro-eramics such as lead lanthanum zirconium titanate (PLZT), however, the biggest problem with these materials is that they are not compatible for monolithic fabrication. Additionally, they require very high temperature processing, beyond the range of lithography process.